A girl who loves to eat and travel

Salmon and Smoked Haddock Fish Cakes

What’s your secret kitchen ingredient? Mine is Panko. Never heard of it? Panko means “bread crumbs” in Japanese. It comes from the combination of pan (bread) and ko (“child of” or “derived from”). It’s a Japanese style breadcrumb that has a coarse texture that resembles large flakes. As the flakes have more surface area they get crispier than normal breadcrumbs when used as a coating and best of all they don’t become soggy. This makes Panko the perfect ingredient to use for coating food to be fried or food that is moist like seafood or these delicious salmon fishcakes.

2. Bring the milk to the boil in a saucepan then turn down the heat, add the fish fillets and simmer for 2-3 mins.

3. Drain the fish and once it is cool enough to handle flake it into a bowl being careful not to break it up too much. You want the fish to hold its shape. Add the potatoes and mash them with a fork. Season with the salt, pepper and parsley.

4. Press the mixture into small cakes. If you want them to look perfect use a chefs ring or scone cutter. Then dip into the flour and dust lightly, dip into the beaten egg and finally roll in the Panko taking care to make sure the fish cake is evenly coated. If you have time chill in the fridge for a while before cooking.

5. To cook: heat a splash of olive oil in a fry pan and fry the fish cakes on a low heat for 3 minutes until lightly golden brown on each sides.

6. Place in an oven tray and cook for 10 minutes until fully heated through.

Serves four with salad for a light and healthy meal. If you want to make up an extra batch stop at step 4 and these fish cakes freeze really well for a dinner for one. Adapted from a recipe by Antony Worral Thompson.

Tip: Panko is available from Asian grocery stores or try online at Japanese Kitchen.